A French volunteer's first American experience by Zachary

A French volunteer's first American experience by Zachary - May 2018 Scholarship Essay

Two months after I moved to the United States in July 2017, after living in France since I was born, I decided to start volunteering in my new residential country. I wanted to feel I was being useful and helping my community and I hoped to learn and grow through this experience. I found out about Heritage Village and I thought this fit exactly what I was looking for. Heritage Village is an open-door museum that gives great knowledge about Pinellas County’s history.

This place was perfect for me as a new American resident who was starting his senior year of high school. I got to learn much of the county’s history and open my mind to my new place of living. I did not only get to acquire some knowledge about the history of this peninsula though, I also got to learn how to work with people I didn’t know. I learned that good results can sometimes require hard work which can be both fun and exhausting, and this helped me to develop greater self-discipline. The experience was very good for me because I got to grow in every way for the better.

I didn’t only learn and grow, but I also felt I helped my new community. Keeping the place clean, preparing events, and giving new ideas to the outside museum. Helping the village is a great experience because you can have a positive impact while you are helping others. I remember creating and painting gift baskets for the kids who would be coming. It felt great to know that my work and the time I was putting in would help our young visitors acquire knowledge through a fun outdoor museum tour, with activities at each checkpoint during their learning adventure.

My volunteer experience at Heritage Village helped me grow through the education I gained in this original museum and the knowledge I acquired by talking to the different people I met there. Looking back, I see that I’ve grown thanks to my experience volunteering to help my community. I learned a lot by helping people of all ages, and I enjoyed seeing people have a nice tour around the historic village. I could directly see the results of my efforts when I volunteered at Heritage Village, which was very rewarding. I am glad I took the step to volunteer in my first year in the United States because it taught me that I can have a positive impact and learn from each person I get to meet.